What should I know about my child’s Individual Education Program (IEP)?

1. What should I know about my child’s Individual Education Program (IEP)?

2. The IEP: • Is a document that states the services your child will receive and where s/he will receive them; • Is developed by a committee that includes you, your child, his/her teachers, school administrators and other professional service providers; • Is an important tool that guides/measures your child’s progress from year to year.

3. Some important parts of the IEP… • Present Level of Performance that includes parent input • Meaningful, measurable annual goals • Results of evaluations and assessments • Needed accommodations and/or modifications • Services that will be provided

4. Builds self-advocacy skills and self-esteem Gives your child some control over their education Builds important social and conversational skills; Teaches the processes of decision-making, goal setting and achievement Your child’s involvement in the IEP

5. What do we know about IEP meetings? • Many students do not attend • Those who do, do not participate in a meaningful way • Many students do not know: -their goals -their accommodations -their rights • Many students do not understand their disability; many do not know they have a disability. Source: I’m Determined, Virginia’s Self-determination Project

6. Some ways your child can participate in their IEP meeting • Create invitations • Write thank-you notes to attendees • Introduce family members • Photocopy materials for the meeting • Create PowerPoint presentations

7. Some ways your child can participate in their IEP meeting • Provide work samples • Create an “It’s All About Me” notebook or folder • Make a list of their strengths and weaknesses • Help write the PLoP • Present their transition plan • Pass out the IEP-at-a-Glance to their teachers and explain their classroom needs

8. When your child feels some control… • When students take charge of their learning, the responsibility shifts from teacher/parent to student. • When students participate in IEP goal setting, they have a vested interest in achieving those goals. • Inappropriate behaviors may decrease as students feel empowered to chart their own course.

9. Remember…there are NO IEPs after high school

10. Entitlement vs. Eligibility • The services and supports your child receives in school will end when she leaves high school. • Services and supports in the community require an eligibility determination. • There are lengthy waiting lists for many services. Plan early!

11. Your child will need self-determination skills… • To advocate for their rights and needs. • To be able to explain to others what they need to be successful on the job, in college or training environments, and when living independently.

12. Now you know! Thanks for learning how self-determination skills will help your child throughout their life!

13. Resources • www.studentledieps.org • www.nichcy.org/stuguid.asp#1 (a student guide to the IEP) • www.cec.sped.org (resources for student-led IEP’s) • www.ncset.org/publications.mfmp.asp • (“My Future My Plan” is a transition planning resource for students and families)

14. Agran, M. (2006). Self-determination: Achieving a say-do correspondence. Tash Connections, May/June, 12-42.Lee, S.H., Palmer, S., Turnbull, A., & Wehmeyer, M. (2006). A model for parent-teacher collaboration to promote self-determination in young children with disabilities. Teaching Exceptional Children, 38 (3), 36-41.Wehmeyer, M. (2004). Self-determination and the empowerment of people with disabilities. American Rehabilitation, Autumn, 22-29.Wehmeyer, M. (2007). Self-determination: Instructional and Assessment Strategies. 9-11. Corwin Press.Wood, W., Karvonen, M., Test, D. W., Browder, D., & Algozzine, B. (2004). Promoting student self-determination skills in IEP planning. Teaching Exceptional Children, 36 (3), 8-16. References